CHAPTER 16 - Man Against Beast
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Atop his steed, his silver armor gleamed coldly in the torchlight. Behind him, the entourage bore a grim prize: the carcass of a white unicorn, her radiant pelt marred by deep crimson.
Bile surged in my throat, threatening to undo me, and I turned away, biting down on my lip to keep from retching. Minutes stretched into eternity as the camp erupted into celebration at their sovereign's success.
Sylvos stood at the center of it, the embodiment of conquest. Concubines of all ranks cooed over him and nobles heaped their praises. He announced a feast to be prepared from the Celestial Mare's flesh, and new applause erupted.
I closed my eyes, willing myself to disappear into the shadows of my mind.
The emperor's voice sliced through the excitement.
Silence fell like a blade across the crowd.
My heart stumbled, each beat growing weaker as his footsteps drew closer. I kept my head bowed, my matted hair falling in a curtain to shield my face. If anyone saw me... They'd see how sick I was.
"Who is tied here?" Sylvos asked.
"My Love!" Isolde's honeyed voice dripped with faux concern. "We uncovered a plot to poison you. Clover concubine Talia, niece of the fallen Lord of Oldvale, is the culprit."
"Is that so? How disappointing," he replied, his tone indifferent.
"She defended her family's honor too fiercely," Bronwyn added with venom. "We had no choice but to punish her."
"And the other one?" Sylvos asked, still disinterested.
"She volunteered to eat the poisoned mushrooms on Lady Talia's behalf," Isolde replied smoothly. "We await confirmation of the poison's effects before delivering a final sentence."
Boots crunched against the dirt as the emperor turned.
"Very well," he sighed. "The matter is yours to handle."
His steps had barely begun to fade when a piercing cry halted everyone's movement.
"Your Majesty!" Lady Virella's voice rang out, raw and desperate.
My head jerked up.
Gasps rippled through the crowd as the blonde woman tore free from the guards restraining her. Her curls were wild, her once-pristine attire disheveled, as though she fought tooth and nail to get here.
"The princess is still recovering from her fever! Yet she must endure this barbarity?" she shouted, pointing at me.
Sylvos turned, his gaze landing on me with a force that stole my breath. His dark eyes widened, recognition dawning.
"Princess?" he asked, the word laden with disbelief.
In a single fluid motion, he drew Briarvex from his back, the wicked blade gleaming in the firelight.
"Who is responsible here?" he demanded.
I stared at him, my mind reeling.
Was this truly the same man I had known in my first life?
"Sylvos..." I whispered, my voice trembling.
But before I could say more, a sound tore through the night — a blood-curdling screech that froze every soul in the clearing.
All eyes turned skyward as a shadow descended — vast and menacing. My heart thundered in my chest as the vulture from before hurtled toward us, its wings blotting out the stars as it grew in size.
No... not growing. It had always been massive.
It had only been so high up that none had grasped its true scale.
The air split with the force of its descent.
The impact sent shockwaves through the camp as the creature crashed into a tent, canvas and wooden beams snapping like brittle bone beneath its weight.
Fire spilled from toppled torches, igniting the wreckage in a hungry blaze.
The twisting flames painted the beast in a hellish glow.
It was no vulture...
Its wings, draped in black fur rather than feathers, shimmered with an unnatural, shifting texture. And where a beak should have been, there was only the grotesque suggestion of one, its edges jagged with rows of massive teeth that caught the firelight in a wicked gleam.
But its reflective blue eyes were the true giveaway.
They fixed upon Sylvos with a hunger that sent ice through my veins.
There was no mistaking it.
The vylnir had come for him.
And it had brought chaos upon us.
Screams shattered the night as the camp dissolved into madness. The world blurred at the edges while the poison sapped my strength, leaving me to drown in the thick, suffocating heat of fire and panic.
The tent where the vylnir had landed burned, flames crawling hungrily across fabric and wood.
Soldiers rushed forward, spears raised, but they were rendered useless before the beast. The vylnir's vast wings cut through the air, sending men flying like broken dolls while spears splintered against its shadowed hide.
Those who got too close were trampled, their bodies crushed beneath monstrous talons.
Their dying screams... The desperate shouting from the fleeing concubines and servants... The roar of crackling flames...
It barely reached me through the pounding of my own blood.
While fighting, the vylnir got tangled in the banners strung between poles. A guttural, bone-chilling screech tore from its throat as its form twisted, its body convulsing as if unraveling. Black fur rippled like liquid shadow, its shape distorting in a way that defied the natural order.
Then the beast emerged anew.
No longer a bird of prey, but something worse — something more suited for slaughter. A hulking nightmare of wolf and bear, thick with corded muscle, and its maw wide enough to swallow a warhorse whole.
Its claws, curved and gleaming like obsidian, flexed in anticipation.
It was violence given form.
A soldier lunged — though he never had a chance.
The vylnir struck with merciless precision, its jaws closing around the man's torso. Blood sprayed in a wide arc as his body was torn in two, his severed corpse flung into a cluster of his comrades. Their horror turned to terror.
And they ran.
Servants, concubines, and even soldiers broke formation, darting like fleeing rats through the burning wreckage. The fire surged higher, licking at the sky, consuming tents and supplies, reducing the world to an inferno of orange and black.
And at the heart of it all stood Sylvos.
Unmoving.
Calm.
As if this nightmare had always been his to command.
The silver gleam of his armor caught the flickering firelight as he strode forward, unshaken. Briarvex was clenched tightly in his hands, the wicked blade pulsating with dark energy.
The vylnir's reflective blue eyes locked onto Sylvos and it unleashed a roar that shook the post I was tied to. Without hesitation, it charged, claws poised and its gaping maw a grotesque chasm of fangs, aiming to tear the emperor apart.
Sylvos faced the onslaught with unnerving calm, a predator in his own right.
Gripping Briarvex in both hands, he swung the cursed blade in a sweeping arc.
Massive thorned vines erupted from the earth, tearing through the ground with a thunderous crack. Their razor-edged tendrils lunged for the vylnir.
But the creature was faster than what seemed possible for its size. It twisted with otherworldly agility, its shadowy form coiling mid-air to avoid the deadly vines, slipping free just before it could get ensnared.
Yet Sylvos didn't wait for it to regain its footing.
Briarvex pulsed with dark energy, and the air seemed to thrum with life. The sharp scent of wood and earth mingled with the acrid smoke of the blazing tents.
I coughed weakly, my pulse growing faint.
I'm running out of time...
Sylvos moved once more, slashing the blade from the other side. The ground groaned beneath him, splitting apart as vines larger than ancient tree trunks exploded upward. The massive thorns jutted like thick spears as they surged toward the beast.
For a moment, I thought the vylnir was trapped.
But it shifted again, its body folding and twisting unnaturally. Its form collapsed inward, shrinking in a single, horrifying heartbeat. When it emerged, it had taken on a new shape — sleek, agile, and feline. As large as a war horse, it's lynx-like body sprung forward.
In this smaller, quicker form, the creature dodged the towering vines with ease, leaping atop them as though they were mere obstacles. Its powerful legs propelled it forward, claws scraping against the wooden tendrils as it raced toward Sylvos like a shadow given life.
The emperor, undeterred, adjusted his stance.
His blade flashed in the firelight as he prepared for combat, meeting the creature head-on. Briarvex clashed with the vylnir's terrifying claws.
It was a duel unlike any I had ever seen.
Man against beast.
Cursed blade against a creature born of nightmares.
The vylnir's reflective blue eyes flickered with malice as it retreated from Sylvos' strike, its movements quick but not quick enough.
Its hind leg landed on a fallen vine, and the emperor's lips curled into a cold smirk.
With a twist of Briarvex, the vine coiled upward as if alive, snaring the creature's foot.
The beast screeched, a sound that cut through the chaos. A single thorn, wicked and black as night, grew from the vine and drove deep into the vylnir's flesh. It writhed, its fur rippling with its attempt to shift forms, but the dark magic of Briarvex bound the beast to its current form.
From where I was tied, I could only watch in helpless horror. My vision blurred, the poison dragging me closer to unconsciousness.
The camp was a maelstrom of fire and smoke, flames devouring the tents and searing the night air.
"Raine!" Virella's voice broke through the madness, sharp and desperate.
She stumbled into view, her golden curls now a tangled mess streaked with ash. Out of breath, she fell to her knees before me and pulled at the ropes binding me to the post.
"My dagger," I coughed, my voice raw and weak. "It's by my side. Hurry..."
Virella snatched Raincatcher and sliced through the ropes. They fell away, and I collapsed into her arms, my legs refusing to hold me.
"Come on," she urged, her voice trembling with urgency as she hoisted me up. "We need to get Talia!"
We staggered forward, the short distance feeling impossible with the waves of people fleeing from the scene. And then we saw her.
Talia's limp form remained tied to the post, her back a bloodied ruin.
She was still in the exact same position.
Not so much as a finger had moved.
"Talia!" Virella's voice cracked as we reached her.
But before we could act, the vylnir let out an ear-piercing shriek that froze the air in our lungs. The beast, in its desperation, did the unthinkable.
It bit clean through its own leg.
Black blood gushing onto the scorched ground. Freed from the vine's hold, it shifted again. In an instant, it swelled into a monstrous wolf-like form, larger than before and with a tail five times the length of any man.
With a flick from that tail, it hurled a burning tent at Sylvos.
The emperor dodged just in time, his blade gleaming as he readied to retaliate.
Vines burst from under his feet, pushing him forward as his blade aimed at the vylnir.
Their duel continued like this. A constant push and pull of attack and parry.
But the result of their battle had caught up to us.
The nearest tent collapsed in flames, falling directly toward Talia.
"No!" I screamed, my voice a ragged cry as I lunged forward.
Virella yanked me back with a desperate strength that sent us both sprawling. The air got knocked from my lungs as I fell to the ashy earth. Despite the way I heaved for my next breath, I scrambled to my knees as quickly as I could.
Where Talia had been only moments before was now a blazing inferno, the fire consuming everything.
"No..." My voice cracked as the reality of it sank in. "No!"
Virella was already up, reaching for the fire with trembling hands. I grabbed her arm, holding her back with pathetic desperation.
"It's too late!" I choked out.
"But she's right there!" Virella sobbed, her struggles growing weaker. "We can't leave her!"
The fire roared, its heat searing our skin even from a distance. The tent was fully ablaze now, the flames licking hungrily at the night sky.
I shook as the truth dawned upon me.
She's gone.
It had barely been three months since we met. But whenever I missed my sisters too much, she and Virella were there for me.
And now she was gone...
If I had been just a second quicker...
Despite the heat surrounding us, a chill settled inside my chest as a dark voice whispered from within me.
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What?
?V???? ???.
The voice was foreign yet intimate, like a friend I had forgotten.
Or I am yet to meet.
My gaze snapped back to the vylnir, its claws raking across Sylvos' chest with a screech of metal. Sparks flew as his armor held, but the force sent him staggering.
Sylvos recovered quickly, driving Briarvex into the earth with a snarl. The blade pulsed, and a web of thorned vines erupted outward, their deadly tendrils lashing toward the beast. But the vylnir leapt with terrifying agility, twisting mid-air to evade the attack.
The vines missed by inches, and the creature landed behind Sylvos, swiping again with claws that tore through leather. I watched with wide eyes as blood spilled from Sylvos' leg.
It was a shallow wound, but proof the emperor wasn't untouchable.
Would the vylnir succeed?
I found myself rooted in place, my breaths shallow and thin, a twisted hope rising in my chest.
Let him die. Let this nightmare end.
And yet...
It felt cheap.
A quick death wouldn't suffice — not for him. Not after all the deaths I had endured.
But could I afford to miss this chance?
All I had to do was nothing. Just let the vylnir kill him for me. If I intervened and he survived, I might not have an opportunity like this again.
But if Sylvos died... With no immediate blood ties... It meant one of his Nightshades would take his place upon the throne.
I had no doubt that if any one of them was given such authority, my life was forfeit.
A bitter reality crashed over me just as another wave of nausea did.
Even if such a future was about to unfold, it likely didn't even matter. At this rate, I'd succumb to the poison before Sylvos was slain.
I blinked the spots from my vision as I grabbed Raincatcher from Virella who was still staring at the fire.
"Ryn..." I rasped.
The blade was ashy, and I wiped at it with my skirt. As the silver gleamed, my friend came into view. He knelt beside me, his face twisted with worry.
"If the vylnir can heal flesh," I asked, my voice shaking, "can it cure poison?"
Ryn's expression darkened.
"No," he admitted. "There's... only one cure that would work fast enough right now..."
"What?" I asked.
He looked pained. His eyes shifted between green and blue as he stared at me.
The way his expression fell, I already knew.
"No..."
He nodded.
"The person you need dead," he said. "Thanks to Briarvex, not only is the tyrant immune to poisons, but his blood is the very cure to them all."
I watched in horror as Sylvos battled the vylnir, his breath labored, his movements slowing under the relentless onslaught. The beast was unyielding, its monstrous form striking with a ferocity that echoed through the chaos.
More cuts had appeared amides their fights. For both of them.
If I could get close enough...
The thought was a cruel joke.
My vision swam, the poison sinking its claws deeper into me. And a cold sweat slicked my skin despite the inferno raging around me.
Every muscle in my body screamed for rest.
But rest was death.
There was no other choice...
I had to stop the vylnir.
My body trembled at the twisted irony. The very person I sought to kill would now be my last chance.
Could I risk it?
Perhaps I could survive the poison... But what if I couldn't?
What if Sylvos died and I died anyway as well? Would I be able to return to the past if Sylvos has met his end? My heart hammered in fear of this new possibility.
I want to live.
I don't want to get my revenge and then die miserably. I want to live a good life once all this was done.
After so many deaths, was life really too much to ask for?
I bit my tongue so hard I tasted blood. The pain grounded me, clearing my thoughts enough to make my decision.
Sylvos will meet his end.
But he will meet it on my terms.
I forced myself to my feet, my legs trembling as I willed them to move.
"What are you doing?" Ryn demanded desperately. "You'll die if you get any closer!"
"And I'll die if I do nothing," I countered.
I dragged myself forward even as the panicked crowd surged past. I stumbled, falling hard to my knees, the impact jarring pain through my already battered body. My head spun, and for a moment, I thought I wouldn't rise again.
But I had to.
I groaned through clenched teeth, forcing myself upright. The world tilted dangerously, the firelight blurring into streaks of orange and black.
My breaths came shallow, each one a battle in itself.
At last, I reached the edge of the fight. The scene before me was both terrifying and mesmerizing. Sylvos and the vylnir were locked in a brutal dance, his blade flashing as the creature's claws tore through the air.
Blood, both human and beast, stained the ground in glistening pools.
I inhaled deeply, though it felt like swallowing glass.
"F?ι???!" I shouted, my voice cutting through the chaos like a plea to the gods.
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